Process of making moldable fabric for various uses



Patented Sept. 30, 1924.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

RAYMQNJD F. BACON, OF NEVT YORK, AND CLEO H. KILDWELL, OF NEW BRIGHTON,

NEW YORK, ASSIGNORS TO JOHN MANNING VAN HEUSEN, 0F BOSTON, MASSA-CHUSETTS.

PROCESS OF MAKING MOLDABLE FABRIC FOR VARIOUS USES.

No Drawing.

To all who-m it may concern:

Be it known that we, RAYMOND F. Bacon, residing in New York city, countyand State of New York, and CLEO H. KinwELL, residing at New Brighton,Richmond County, State of New York, both citizens of the United States,have jointly invented new and useful Improvements in Processes of MakingMoldable Fabric for Various Uses, of which the following is aspecification.

The present invention relates to a method of making moldable fabric forvarious uses as hereinafter more fully set forth. More particularly theinvention relates to a method of chemically treating woven or knittedfabrics so as to render the same moldable or plastic and to means formoulding and setting the fabric in any desired shape or form.

Our invention may be applied, and will be found highly useful, in themanufacture of a large number of different articles. It may be used inthe process of manufacture of many articles which heretofore have beenmade in whole or in part of fabric which it was necessary to cut intopieces of the desired shape and subsequently stitch together.

Broadly stated, our invention comprises, first, subjecting the woven orknitted fabric, or the portion thereof which it is dQSlIIQCl to mould orshape, to the action of an acid; second, washing out the acid with wateror an alkaline solution or both, and th rd, moulding the fabric on aform of the desired shape and drying it while on the form. We have foundthat by utilizing acid of -the proper strength and by subjecting thefabric to its action for the proper length of time, the fabric sotreated will become, to a de gree, plastic and moldable. That is to say,the fabric while in this condition maybe placed over a form of thedesired shape, and by applying pressure and heat, be caused to take onthe shape of the said form.

The strength of the acid used and the length of time of the acidtreatment will vary with the particular material treated. So also theparticular method of subjecting the material to the acid may varywidely. Accordingly, we shall not endeavor herein to describe all of theways in which our invention may be practiced. But in order that thoseskilled in the art may understand Application filed November 2, 1922.$eria1 No. 598,694.

the invention fully and may apply it to any desired material, we willfor purposes of illustration merely, and not with the intention oflimiting the scope of the invention, describe one way in which we haveapplied theinvention to one type of fabric with excellent results.

The fabric whose treatment we are about to describe is a closely knittedfabric made of cotton yarn, and comprising one or more thicknesses orplies of material. A fabric of this sort has a considerable degree ofbody and thickness, and when stretched does not present an openwork orporous appearance of so marked a degree as appears in a stretchedknitted fabric which is made of relatively fine yarn and which isloosely knitted. For this particular fabric we have found that sulphuricacid of the strength of 70 to 80%, and preferably 73 to 75%, by, weight,acting upon the fabric for approximately one minute at ordinary roomtemperature, gives the desired results. It is, of course, necessary thatthe acid act upon all of the threads of the fabric at all points, bothinterior and exterior. In order to bring about this result with tightlywoven or knitted fabrics it may be found necessary to utilize means offorcing the acid through the fabric so as thoroughly to saturate thesame. After this treatment has been carried on for approximately oneminute as aforesaid, the fabric is thoroughly washed with water so thatall traces of an acid reaction are removed. It may be further necessaryto treat the fabric with an alkaline solution in order to insure thecomplete removal of the acid.

When the-sulphuric acid is applied to the cotton fabric as abovedescribed, it appears that the acid combines with all of the moisture(both in physical form and chemical combination with the cellulose)which is present in the fabric. When the fabric is subsequently washedwith water the sulphuric acid is completely removed and we believe thatthe cellulose combines with the water to form hydrocellulose. We havediscovered that when the fabric is in this condition it is easilydistorted to almost any desired shape, and it is this property of thefabric which we utilize in the present invention.

As above stated, we place the fabric after treating the same, on a formof the desired shape. In certain instances where the new shape which thefabric is to have is not ma terially different from the shape of thefabric before it was treated, it will not be necessary to exert pressureor heat on the fabric, since the powerful shrinking properties of theacid will cause the fabric to take on the exact shape of the form whilethe fabric is drying at ordinary room temperature. However, if the newshape which the fabric is to assume is substantially different from theoriginal shape of the fabric, it will be found advantageous to applypressure and heat to the fabric while on the form or mould. The degreeof heat necessary, and also the amount of pressure required, will varywidely, depending upon the type of fabric which is being used and alsoupon the contour of the form upon which the fabric is placed. In someinstances it may be sufficient simply to pass an iron over the fabricafter placing the same on the form. In other instances the form itselfmay be heated by, for example, the provision of electrical heat ingunits within the form, or by placing the form itself withthe fabricthereon in an oven. If desired, the form may be constructed of twoseparate and corresponding sections, comprising male and female elementsbetween which the fabric is placed. Pressure may then be applied tothese elements and the fabric pressed into the exact shape of the form.It is true that the extent to which the fabric in its plastic conditioncan be stretched and shaped is not unlimited, since the threads of thefabric itself while they are susceptible of a greater distortion andstretching while in this condition than normally, will nevertheless, beseparated and broken if too great a tension is applied. Consequently,ifthe form which is used is of a nature which will require extremedistortion and stretching of the threads of the fabrics, we have foundit advisable to provide fabrics for this treatment, which itselfgenerally conforms to the shape of the form upon which it is to beplaced. That is, the fabric may be knitted or woven in such a manner asto give it the general contour of the ultimate shape which it is tohave, or, if desired, the fabric to be treated may be made up of two ormore pieces of fabric which have been cut to the desired shape andstitched together. For example, in the manufacture of hats by the abovedescribed process, we have found it advisable to knit or weave a fabric,the edges of which will lie flat on a plane surface when the fabric isplaced thereon and the central portion of which is raised or bulgedslightly to conform in a general way to the outline of the crown of thehat. When the acid treatment and subsequent shaping of the fabric on theform has been completed, the threads have not been placed under atension which would in any way weaken the fabric, but nevertheless, thefabric has assumed the exact shape of a hat. As another example, in themanufacture of boots or shoes, we have found it advantageous to providea heavy fabric sock, which in general conforms to the shape of the foot,and to subject this sock to the acid treatment, and subsequently to theshapingprocess by placing the sock on a shoe tree and pressing andheating the same so that it will take on the exact contour of the saidshoe tree.

When the fabric has been treated with sulphuric acid in accordance withthe above described method, and has, subsequently, been dried on a formof the desired shape, the fabric takes on a considerable degree ofstiffness. As a result of this stiffening prop erty of the treatment,the fabric when taken from the form does not lose its shape. On

the contrary, the stiffness which is imparted to it is sufficient with,most fabrics to render the same selfsupporting. That is to say, when thefabric has been taken off the form it retains its shape even after aconsiderable amount of handling or rough usage. It will be seen thatfabric treated. in accordance with our invention may be used as a baseto which other materials may beattached. For instance, in themanufacture of ladies hats, the treated fabric may be used as the frameor shape of the hat, and to it may be attached ribbons, feathers, orother ornaments which are commonly used in the trimming of hats.

If the article which is manufactured in accordance with the processabove described is likely, in the subsequent use thereof, to becomemoistened or wet with water, it may be found desirable to treat thefabric with waterproofing materials. Any waterproofing materials may beused for this purpose, but we have found that excellent results areobtained by subjecting the fabric first to the action of aluminumacetate and then to the action of a strong soap solution, for example,sodium stearate. This treatment may be applied to the fabric eitherbefore or after the said fabric has been moulded and shaped on the form.e preferably subject the fabric to the treatment after the fabric hasbeen treated with the acid and before the said fabric has been placed onthe form. It will be noted that when the fabric has been waterproofed,moisture will not penterate the fabric or be absorbed thereby to anyappreciable degree, and consequently, the fabric will not lose itsstiffness and shape, which would tend to occur if a considerable amountof moisture were permitted to enter the fabric.

The terms and expressions which we have employed are used as terms ofdescription and not of limitation, and we have no intention, in the useof such terms and ex aressions, of excluding any equivalents o thefeatures described, or portions thereof, but recognize that variousmodifications are possible within thes'cope of the invention claimed. I

lVhat we claim is:

1. The method of moulding or shaping cloth fabric, which,consists insubject-ing the fabric to the action of an acid, washing out the acid,placing the fabric while wet on a form of the desired shape, and dryingthe fabric while on the said form.

2. The method of moulding or shaping knitted fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric to the action of an acid, Washing out the acid,placing the fabric while wet on a form of the desired shape, and dryingthe fabric while on the said form.

3. The method of moulding or shaping cloth fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric to the action of sulphuric acid, placing thefabric while wet on a form of the desired shape, and drying the fabricwhile on thesaid form.

4. The method of moulding or shaping knitted fabric, which consists insubjecting v the fabric to the action of sulphuric acid,

placing the fabric while wet on a form of the desired shape, and dryingthe fabric while on the said form.

5. The method of shaping or moulding cloth fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric for approximately one minute to the action ofsulphuric acid of a strength from 7 0 to 80% by weight, washing out theacid, with water, placing the fabric while wet on a form of the desiredshape, and drying the fabric while on said form.

6. The method of shaping or moulding knitted fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric for approximately one minute to the action ofsulphuric acid of. a strength fron170 to 80% by weight, washing out theacid with water, placing thefabric while wet on a form of the desiredshape, and drying the fabric while on said form.

7. The method of moulding or shaping cloth fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric, to the action of anacid, wash-ing out the acid,placing the fabric while wet on a form of the desiredvshape, exertingpressure and heat on the fabric causing it to take on the contour of theform, and leaving the fabric on the said form until dry.

8. The method of moulding or shaping knitted fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric to the action-of an acid, wash-.

ing out the acid, placing the fabric while wet on a form of the desiredshape, exerting pressure. and beaten the fabric causing it to takeon'the 'contour'of the form, and leaving the fabric on the said form,untildry.

9. The method of moulding or shaping cloth fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric to the action of an acid, washing out the acid,treating the fabric. with a solution of aluminum acetate, then treatingthe fabric with a strong soap solution, and finally placingtlie fabricwhile wet on a form of the desired shape, and drying it while on thesaid form.

10. The method of moulding or shaping knitted fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric to the action of an acid, washing out the acid,treating the fabric with a solution of aluminum acetate, then treatingthe fabric with a strong soap solution, and finally placing the fabricwhile wet on a form of the desired shape, and drying it while on thesaid form.

11. The method of moulding or shaping cloth fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric'to the action of an acid, washing out the acid,placing the fabric while wet on a form of the desired shape, and dryingit thereon, treating the fabric with a solution of aluminum acetate, andfinally treating it with a strong soap solution.

12. The method of moulding or shaping knitted fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric to the action of an acid, washing out the acid,placing the fabric while wet on a form of the desired shape, and dryingit thereon, treating the fabric with a solution of aluminum acetate, andfinally treating it with a strong soap solution.

13. The method of moulding orshaping cloth fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric to the action of an acid, washing out the acidtreating the fabric with waterproofing materials, and finally placingthe fabric while wet on a form of the desired shape, and drying it whileon the said form.

14. The method of moulding or shaping knitted fabric, which consists insubjecting the fabric to the action of an acid, washing out the acidtreating the fabric with waterproofing materials, and finally placingthe fabric while wet on a form of the desired shape, and drying it whileon the said form.

RAYMOND F. BACON. CLEO H. KIDWELL.

